By Simon Gonzalez
About 100 people crammed into the New Hanover County Board of Commissioners meeting on Monday night, eager for a public hearing on the revised special use permit.
They went away disappointed, sent home when the commissioners decided to kick the controversial issue down the road yet again.
The special use permit, or SUP, is required of certain businesses before they can build in the county. The current guidelines were implemented in 2011, and have generated controversy ever since. Critics claim it limits manufacturing and heavy industry — it was a factor in Titan America’s decision not to build a cement plant in Castle Hayne — and therefore it is said to “limits jobs.”
Proponents claim the SUP is necessary to preserve our air and water quality and the environment that makes living on the coast so special, but the current one is vaguely worded and needs clarity.
An advisory team that included representatives from the North Carolina Coastal Federation, regional chambers of commerce, local businesses, academia and the county planning board was formed earlier this year to draft a revised SUP.
The county planning board has since held three sessions to work on the revisions and amendments, but has yet to produce a final product for the commissioners to vote on.
The most recent work session was held last Thursday, a few days before the scheduled public hearing. Planning board members again failed to complete their work, instead voting unanimously to continue the issue to allow for further discussion.
No modified SUP meant no public discussion. Sorry, those of you who filled the meeting to overflowing. Sorry, you 17 people who signed up to speak in favor of the amended SUP. Sorry, you five who wanted to voice your opposition. Come back again … some time.
It did make some sense to call it off. The hearing was at the behest of outgoing chairwoman Beth Dawson, who wanted to bring the issue to a head before she departs. In a prewritten statement, she said the SUP draft was “fairly thorough” and “comprehensive” and ready for public discussion.
Dawson was understandably anxious to move the SUP along. Still, there was no need to ram it through to give her a legacy item.
The planning board’s stated reason for not producing a finished document is that it needs just a little more time to get it right. It doesn’t require an extra degree of cynicism to suppose the postponement was to take the issue out of the hands of the lame-duck commission, but that’s OK. It makes sense to postpone discussion until the new board is in place.
The commissioners reconvene on Dec. 5, with Patricia Kusek replacing Dawson. Kusek ran in part on a “pro business” platform so there’s some fear the SUP could lose environmental teeth, but it’s encouraging that the motion on Monday to table the item received bipartisan support, with only Dawson dissenting.
The trick for the new commission, as it was for the old, will be to balance the pro-business and pro-environment sides. The county needs a compromise permit that truly protects our air and water quality while allowing for business and job growth. Projections suggest an additional 100,000 residents over the next 20 years. A vibrant economy is a must.
Those things, though, should not be in conflict. Any new business that would adversely affect the quality of our water and our air is a business we can do without.
Yes, business is important. Jobs are important. The tax base is important. But none of those things should trump the quality of life we enjoy as New Hanover County residents. Rather than focusing on people who might move here someday, the commission needs to consider those already here.
The commission needs to act soon. It’s time to stop the delaying actions, and kicking the can down the road. The time has come to act.
